I'm near

Those days spent in quarantine with a bunch of eccentrics will be remembered by the guys for a long time. Even now, after a full treatment and a lot of tests, they sometimes have nightmares, most often Yi Hyun. But, before, he flatly refused to notify her about this, believing that it was only his problems, and the girl should only worry about herself and her condition. For these words, she slapped him menacingly on the leg and said that all their problems concern not only one person, now that they are together, the problems are common. Despite what they are. Whether it’s a showdown with neighbors, quarrels at work or just minor misunderstandings, they should go through it together. Of course, at first Yi Hyun didn’t want to agree to this rule and often refused, saying that everything was fine with him. Only Sae Bom’s light sleep, interrupted every time Yi Hyun woke up abruptly after another nightmare, was clear proof of a vile lie. The girl understood that with such pressure she could only make things worse, so she relented, but still stood her ground. *** On one of the autumn days, when the rains did not come out of the weather forecasts and the sky was always covered with black clouds, he still decided to share his nightmares with his beloved. Late at night, when a thunderstorm raged outside, Sae Bom once again woke up because of the guy’s sharp rise. To her questions about how he was feeling, he received silence and this surprised her, because he usually said that he was perfectly fine and she should not worry about him. She yawns and sits right in front of him, reaching out to his back, stroking gently. “I’m here. I’m near.” Sae Bom whispers, looking at Yi Hyun and listening to his ragged breathing. His palms close his eyes, as if he doesn’t want to see what is around him. He shakes his head, as Sae Bom realized — denies another nightmare. The girl’s hands move to his shoulders and gently rub them, continuing to whisper words of support. After a while, he no longer shakes his head and his breathing returns to normal. Then, Sae Bom’s palms gently touch him, still holding onto the guy’s face. She has to apply a little pressure to remove them from her face. Almost immediately, they find eye contact. There is so much fear and pain in his eyes. She saw them after nightmares, but it seems that today he dreamed of something new that finally brought him out. He kept looking at her face, looking for something that only he knew. “Yi Hyun?” She asks quietly, outlining the guy’s cheekbones, still observing his condition. “Sae Bom,” whispers her name, smiling slightly at the girl’s warm touch. “I’m here.” Seeing his half-smile, she wants to smile back, but she realizes that maybe it’s just a side effect of a nightmare. “Yes, you’re here. Thank you.” answers briefly, without breaking contact. Their silence was never awkward. Sometimes, it says a lot more than words can say. “You know, for the first time I had such a disgusting nightmare …” he begins, pausing for just a couple of seconds. “We were on the roof and I was not in the best condition, I chewed Andrew’s throat, but he did not die, I saw him struggling and holding his throat, nervously swallowing air with his mouth. He had a gun in his hands, but he did nothing and did not even try to raise a gun. Because he was so scared and surprised that I was infected. And then, you came back. And almost immediately you ran to me, not paying attention to how I look, probably didn’t even notice the sick bastard Andrew lying next to me. You were smiling so happily when you saw me. Your eyes were so bright, like the stars in the sky. I didn’t understand myself at all. I felt only animal thirst, oozing blood from the wound of the lying guy and the warmth of your body. Your blood. I didn’t feel that the person closest to me was next to me. Just quenching my thirst. You tried to bring me back to normal, but I mumbled something unintelligible, and then bit you on the neck. You literally begged me to come to my senses and stop. But I didn’t do anything. I continued to gnaw your neck like a yard dog who found food after days of hunger and enjoy what I was doing. And after that, I just dumped your body not far from Andrew.” Sae Bom had assumed that Yi Hyun might have been dreaming, and now she finally understood why he didn’t want to share his terrible nightmares with her. All this time his eyes were closed, he was afraid to look into the girl’s eyes. He was afraid that he would see fear in her eyes. But when he opened them, he saw only tears accumulated in the corners of her eyes, which she did not want to show, but clearly was in no hurry to remove her hands from his face, providing support. “Just like in a nightmare …” a trembling voice says wearily. “When your body fell to the ground, I saw tears in your eyes and fear, which I always notice, even if you try to hide it. You were looking right at me. Into the soul. Unspoken words froze on her lips, and her hands tightened around her throat. I think I was already starting to get back to normal and the realization of what I had done hit me in the head. I squeezed my eyes shut several times, not believing what I had done. Your gaze was fixed on me and my eyes were anxiously running over you and your body. It took me a while to notice that Andrew wasn’t dead after all. His trembling hand pointed the gun at your head and before I could stop him, he fired.”